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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24374077">How To Save A Life</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whirlwind/pseuds/Whirlwind'>Whirlwind</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Legacies (TV 2018)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Childhood Trauma, F/M, Forgotten First Meeting, Handon, Hurt/Comfort</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 00:47:39</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,179</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24374077</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whirlwind/pseuds/Whirlwind</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Landon always thought the first time he and Hope met was when he was working at the Mystic Grill and they were 15. Turns out that wasn't the case.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hayley Marshall &amp; Hope Mikaelson, Hayley Marshall &amp; Landon Kirby, Landon Kirby/Hope Mikaelson</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>77</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>How To Save A Life</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I've always loved the idea of these two having met as kids, and I'm a sucker for the "Forgotten First Meeting" Trope. And so, this fic happened. Didn't expect it to be this long, but it kinda got away from me. Apologies in advance for the trauma I inflict on a young Landon Kirby.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“And that’s my Aunt Rebekah and Marcel.”</p><p>Hope informs Landon as he sits beside her on the bed, pointing to the picture from the family photo album her aunt had recently sent over. After hearing her niece had sadly lost all of her pictures when she'd jumped into Malivore, it only felt right to make her one.</p><p>“Marcel and her are engaged, right?”</p><p>Hope nods. “Yeah, he’s also technically my adoptive older brother.”</p><p>Landon blinks repeatedly as he tries to process all this information.</p><p>“Didn’t you also say he tried to destroy the Mikaelson’s before?”</p><p>"Uh, yeah..." She admits awkwardly, scratching at her cheek. Somehow hearing all these things out loud makes her suddenly realize just how messy her life must sound to other people. And that was barely even the tip of the iceberg when it came to the Mikaelson’s. How he's not running for the hills at this point is beyond her.</p><p>"Complicated family." Landon comments causally, surprisingly unfazed.</p><p>“That’s not a judgement by the way.” He quickly clarifies. “I’m hardly one to talk, giving my dad only wants me for the purposes of being a meat suit. And for all I know, I could have dozens of other mud siblings like Clarke running around out there.”</p><p>Hope shutters at the thought, but smiles softly at how well he's taking all this.</p><p>She always feels a little guilty talking about family stuff around Landon though. He says he doesn’t mind, and that he really likes hearing about them, but she can’t help think it’s just a reminder of something he never had growing up.</p><p>“If I’m going to finally meet them this summer, I'm gonna need to study up on who's who."</p><p>Hope chuckles lightly, shaking her head. "It's not a test."</p><p>He tips his chin and raises up a single eyebrow. "Isn't it though? I mean, if I don't make a good impression on them..."</p><p>"You'll be fine, Landon." She reassures him, patting him on the leg. "Yes, my family has an extremely long history stretching back centuries, but no one expects you to know all of it."</p><p>"Well, I could always make flash cards." He jokes lightly, causing Hope to laugh and playfully bump her shoulder against his.</p><p>"Still..." Landon starts, scratching nervously at the back of his neck the more he thinks about it. "Remember when I called your uncle, Mr. Marshall?"</p><p>To be fair, that was an easily understandable mistake given Hope was going by her mother's last name at the time.</p><p>"I rather not have a repeat of that, or worse. I just..." Landon sighs. "I want them to like me."</p><p>“You’re already doing better than my last boyfriend.” She offers with an honest shrug, and Landon feels guilty for the snort he lets out.</p><p>He's looking forward to meeting her family, but man did he find them intimidating. Not as intimidating as meeting either of her parents would have been, but still. They were basically New Orleans royalty, and he felt like nothing more than the lowly peasant boy who fell in love with the princess.</p><p>"I know your family means everything to you, and I just don't wanna screw things up." He admits honestly, and Hope can see just how big of a deal this is to him. A thought briefly crosses her mind that she could only imagine years from now how nervous he'd be if he went to ask them for permission to marry her. The silly notion makes her blush slightly, and she shakes her head to clear it from her brain.</p><p>Hope reaches out for one of his curls and lightly twirls it around her finger, causing Landon to let out a content hum.</p><p>"I love you Landon Kirby, and I know that they will too. So please stop fretting."</p><p>He smiles softly, only semi convinced of that last part, before finally nodding. "Yes, ma'am."</p><p>As they get back to looking through the album, Hope flips to the next page and Landon's eyes suddenly widen as he notices a certain picture in the upper left hand corner. Leaning forward to get a better look, he sharply inhales a surprised breath at what he sees. His girlfriend turns to him curiously, perplexed by his rather strange behavior.</p><p>"That's a picture of me and my mom when I was younger." She explains simply, tapping the photo.</p><p>His head whips around to look at her, complete disbelief written all over his face.</p><p>"Wait, that's you and your mother?"</p><p>Hope tips her head, a confused expression on her face. "Yeah. Why?"</p><p>A stunned Landon stares at her with a mixture of confusion and amazement as he finally manages to find his words.</p><p>"Because... you guys saved my life."</p>
<hr/><p>"I'm sorry! It was an accident!" A seven year old Landon apologizes profusely to a burly man known as Ned, who happens to be his current foster parent.</p><p>He'd tripped over one of the man's discarded beer bottles that were scattered about the floor, and had broken a rather tacky football lamp that Ned loved.</p><p>“Come here, you clumsy brat!”</p><p>The man grabs him roughly by the arm, and Landon yelps out in pain. His grip is so tight around his wrist that he's certain he'll have bruises there in morning. Ned begins dragging him towards the back door and Landon immediately knows where they’re headed. Desperate, he struggles to break free, but it’s no use against the older man’s strength.</p><p>“Please! Not the shed! I'm sorry!” He begs, dragging his feet, hoping to slow down the inevitable.</p><p>"Quiet, boy!" Ned shouts, so loud that it makes Landon's ears ring and he flinches.</p><p>Silent tears stream down his face as the small shed comes into view, and he makes one last ditch effort to escape. It's in vain though. Ned opens the door and shoves him roughly inside, knocking the boy to the floor knees first. Landon quickly tries to scramble to his feet in order to prevent the door from shutting. He rushes forward, the beam of light shining in from outside slowly shrinking as it begins to close, but he’s not fast enough. His body slams inelegantly against the wood and he claws helplessly at it.</p><p>The sound of the bolt locking into place outside makes Landon gasp and a dire panic surges through him.</p><p>"I'll come back for you when you've learned your lesson."</p><p>"No, please!" He cries out. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" But it all falls on deaf ears, and the distant noise of the house door slamming shut ends any chance of Ned changing his mind.</p><p>The boy looks around at the dark windowless enclosure, eyes slowly trying to adjust. It's tiny and cramped, and the gardening tools strewn about make it feel even smaller than it is. Landon spins back around and pounds his tiny fists relentlessly against the door as he feels his claustrophobia kick into high gear.</p><p>This goes on for awhile, and Landon’s not sure how long he’s been out here for, but the summer heat is becoming exceedingly unbearable inside the structure. The air is so hot and dense that breathing starts to become a real struggle. His legs are growing too tired to even hold him up anymore, and his voice hurts from screaming.</p><p>He lets out one last desperate cry for help and weakly bangs his fists against the door, before sinking to the floor and letting his weary eyes shut. It's then he suddenly hears the jostling of the lock from outside, causing his mind to stir and his hopeful heart to pick up in speed. Landon barely manages to get to his feet, body pressed against the door for support as he waits.</p><p>The door rips open and he clumsily tumbles out, just narrowly avoiding ending up face first in the dirt. But he quickly realizes the whole ordeal has been extremely taxing on his little body, and his vision begins to swim. Just before he passes out though, Landon briefly catches sight of a brunette woman with intense hazel eyes, and a little girl with red hair before he collapses into her arms and everything goes black.</p>
<hr/><p>It's a little while later when the boy finally begins to stir on the sofa. He moans quietly, lids slowly fluttering open. The unfamiliar surroundings cause him to panic instantly, and he abruptly sits up, knocking the cool compress off his head and onto his lap, causing him to jump.</p><p>"It's okay." A small voice says from close by, and a young Hope hops off the chair she'd been sitting on to come over to him.</p><p>The curly haired child eyes her cautiously, very confused by everything that’s happening.</p><p>"Where am I?" He asks looking around, taking in the small cabin with wide, frantic eyes.</p><p>"Somewhere safe." She replies confidently, with a friendly smile. Something in the sound of her voice, paired with the word 'safe' makes him stop, shoulders relaxing slightly at the thought. He can’t remember the last time he felt safe.</p><p>Hope goes to sit beside him on the couch, but when he moves to make more room for her, he feels a wave of pain shoot through him.</p><p>"Ow!" The boy winces in pain, looking down at his hands. They look awful. Red and raw, loaded with cuts and scrapes. Dried blood stubbornly clings to his knuckles. Just how long had he been pounding on that shed door?</p><p>Hope inhales a small gasp when she sees them, and the boy tries to hide his hands. She immediately reaches for her wrist, removing the gold bracelet from her arm and resting it on the end table nearby.</p><p>Her tiny hands reach out, fingertips motioning for him to give her his hands. He pulls back for a moment, hesitant, a mixture of fear and embarrassment swirling behind his eyes.</p><p>"Please?" She whispers softly. "I promise I won't hurt you." He stares into her kind face and swallows hard as he considers. Eventually, he exhales a small sigh and offers his battered hands to her. Ever so gently, she cradles them in her own, thumbs lightly running across his knuckles.</p><p>Shutting her eyes, he watches her curiously as she begins to recite something under her breath. When the boy goes to look down, he notices the cuts have slowly begun to fade and the throbbing pain is receding. The formerly angry red skin lightens back to its usual color.</p><p>When Hope's done, she reopens her eyes and looks at him, expression bright. "See? All better."</p><p>His mouth is hanging open and he's staring at her wide eyed, trying to understand what he just saw.</p><p>“How- how did you...?” The boy stutters out, and a young Hope grins, holding a finger up to her lips. “Shh. It’s a secret. Just don’t tell my mom, okay?”</p><p>He blinks repeatedly, both surprised by what just happened and by her genuine kindness towards him. He honestly wasn't used to it, someone showing any type of regard for him. His lips twitch up into a gentle, heartfelt smile and he eventually nods, agreeing to keep her secret. She smiles back, grabbing the rope bracelet off the table to put back on her wrist again.</p><p>"So what's your name?" She asks curiously with a tip of her head as she scooted closer.</p><p>"It's La-"</p><p>"Look who's finally awake." A soothing female voice interrupts, and the curly haired child spins around startled. He instinctively begins to tremble at the sight of the older woman entering the room, sinking back into the cushions of the couch.</p><p>"It's okay." Hope quickly assures him, placing a gentle hand atop his. "That's just my mom."</p><p>Her touch slowly makes the shaking cease, and he begins to gradually remember seeing this woman just before he passed out. She was the one who got him out of the shed, and must have been the one who brought him here.</p><p>Hayley mindfully moves closer to them, careful as to not frighten the boy. She kneels down in front of the nervous child, her expression warm and maternal. Her fingers gently brush the curls out of his face so that she can see him better.</p><p>"You wanna tell me how you wound up in that shed?"</p><p>He looks down, awkwardly fiddling with the bottom of his t-shirt. "I... I tripped and broke something. And uh, my foster dad, he got really mad about it and put me out there.” He shakes his head. “But this time, it was for a really long time.”</p><p><em>‘This time?’</em> Hayley wants to ask, but she already knows the answer. Clearly it’s happened often enough that he viewed this punishment as normal, which it certainly wasn’t. She can smell the faint hint of alcohol on the boys clothes, and draws her own conclusions about why the man forgot about him. There's little doubt in her mind that he's blackout drunk in the house somewhere.</p><p>"It was an accident though!" The boy rambles, pulling her back to the present, his voice growing louder and more desperate. "I- I didn't- I didn't mean to! I'm sorry! I-" His breathing starts to become erratic and he starts coughing as he feels his vocal chords becoming hoarse.</p><p>A worried Hope moves closer and Hayley tries to calm him down.</p><p>"Shh. Hey," The brunette soothes gently. "Are you thirsty?"</p><p>He nods vigorously, curls bouncing about, his throat overwhelmingly parched. Hayley stands up and reaches for the glass on the table behind her with one hand, and for the water pitcher with the other. She begins to fill it up, then places the container back on the wood. Hayley crouches down in front of him and offers it to boy.</p><p>His eyes light up, but his hands hover there a moment, almost afraid to take it. A memory of glass shattering flickers behind his eyes and panic grips him frozen. Hayley recognizes the traumatized look and frowns sympathetically as she makes the connection.</p><p>"Hey," She coaxes gently, tapping her fingernail against the cup. "It's not real glass. It won't break. See?" The brunette reaches for one of the extra cups she'd brought over and holds it up for him to see, before signaling that she intends to drop it. The cup clatters against the wood floor but doesn't break, and the boy exhales a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.</p><p>"You don't have to worry." She assures him, and his eyes flick back and forth between her and the cup a few times. After a moment of deliberation, he finally reaches for the offered drink and downs the water in a matter seconds. Once done, he holds it out to her in hopes of a refill. Hayley chuckles sadly, heart aching for the small boy as she pours him another.</p><p>He's skinny, she notices. Skinnier than he should be for that age, but it doesn't surprise her after all she's heard. She wonders when was the last time he ate anything?</p><p>"How about I make you two a sandwich?" She offers, and Hope turns to her couch companion to see what he has to say, and he gives a gentle nod in confirmation.</p><p>“Yes, please!” She tells her mother and Hayley smiles softly before heading to the kitchen.</p><p>When she returns later to give them their food, she finally notices the significant improvement in the child's hands. She suspiciously glances over at Hope, but her daughter is too preoccupied chatting and laughing with the boy to even be aware of it. It's been so long since Hope had been able to interact with someone her own age like this. For a brief moment, she gets to have a small sense of normalcy in her life, something that is few and far between. The sight brings a smile to the woman’s face.</p><p>Hayley returns to the kitchen to clean up, occasionally looking up to watch the unlikely pair in the other room.</p><p>A part of her wishes she could take the boy with her. Rescue him from that god awful place he was forced stay at, but he would hardly be any safer with them. The little human wouldn't stand a chance against all the dangers constantly on their heels. They had to keep moving in order to stay safe, and were set to leave for the next place in only a matter of days, much to Hope's disappointment.</p><p>Hayley could see that it was starting to take a toll on her. A forced smile on her sweet face, masking a pair of lonely eyes. She prays this won't always be her daughter's life.</p><p>She's drawn out of her thoughts by a concerned Hope entering the kitchen and gently tugging at her sleeve. "Mommy. Are you gonna make him forget?"</p><p>The question catches her by surprise. She knows the boy saw Hope do magic, but she suspects it won't be much of a concern. He was just a kid, anyone would think it was just the product of his imagination, a fantasy to deal with the trauma at home.</p><p>When she had been kicked out at thirteen and forced to survive on her own, she knew how much even the smallest act of kindness from someone meant. And how it made getting through the tough times just a little bit easier. He was going to need that if he wanted to survive in this world. She couldn't take that from him.</p><p>Hayley affectionately ruffles her daughter's hair. "No, baby. I'm not."</p><p>Hope smiles up at her, relieved to hear that. "Good. Even if I don't ever get to see him again, I didn't want him to forget me."</p><p>Her mother laughs softly and Hope hugs her leg.</p><p>“Do you think he’ll be okay?” She asks, and Hayley turns to watch the boy eating what she suspects is the other half of Hope's sandwich, that her daughter must have given to him. The older woman sighs heavily.</p><p>"I don't know, sweetheart. But I hope so."</p><p>There wasn't a lot she could do for him, but she did have some plans for that monster of a man he called a foster parent.</p>
<hr/><p>Distant memories begin to flitter back into Hope's mind and something slowly starts to click. A set of young, fragile green-gray eyes overlap with the wise and gentle pair currently staring back at her, and the realization hits her.</p><p>"Oh my God. You were the curly haired boy from the shed."</p><p>“You remember that?” Landon asks, genuinely surprised to hear her say so. It was obvious why the memory had stuck with him, but after everything Hope had seen throughout her young life, he felt like their encounter was probably nothing more than just a blip in her chaotic childhood.</p><p>Hope slowly bobs her head. Though it had been over ten years since that day, and those memories had grown quite hazy with time, she hadn’t been able to forget the scared little boy from the cabin. The friend she only had for a day, and never even knew the name of.</p><p>From time to time, she would still wonder what ever happened to him. Was he okay? Safe? Happy? But never did she expect that the boy from that day would turn out to be Landon Kirby, the love of her life, of all people.</p><p>Her heart clenches in her chest as she realizes that all the fear and pain she'd seen back then actually belongs to Landon. She'd known that growing up, things had been bad for him. On certain occasions, he'd mentioned his abusive upbringing. She'd seen the old cigarette burns that peppered his skin in places. But witnessing his pure, unadulterated fear first hand as she had then made it all feel unbearably fresh, like accidentally reopening an old wound.</p><p>Tears sting at her eyes and she reaches for his hands, thumbs gently grazing his knuckles like she'd done all those years ago. Their bodies remembering what time has made fuzzy of old memories.</p><p>"I'm so sorry for what happened to you."</p><p>Landon shakes his head dismissively. "I’m no worse for the wear. It was a long time ago."</p><p>"That doesn't make any of it okay." Hope argues softly, and he can't quite find it in him to disagree with her. She’s right, and being here has made him start to realize that. But for so long, that was his normal, and it's a hard thing to shake.</p><p>He stares down at their hands and exhales a small sigh at the comfort of her touch. He's still trying to wrap his head around Hope being the same girl who healed his hands and gave him half her ham sandwich. Turns out she's been saving him long before he ever came to the Salvatore School.</p><p>Looking up at her, Landon frowns slightly. “I never got a chance to thank you and your mom for everything you did for me that day.” He realizes now that he'll never get that chance, at least, when it comes to her mother.</p><p>Hope smiles sadly at him, expression thoughtful as she gives his hand a reassuring squeeze. "She knew."</p><p>He gives her a weak half smile before exhaling a shaky sigh. "I... I thought I was going to die in there." Landon admits painfully, memories of that day rushing back as he looks away. "Granted, in hindsight, I guess I would have just come back to life, but..." He shakes his head and sighs. "I never forgot that kindness though. Thank you."</p><p>They both had difficult childhoods in their own respective ways, but the one thing Hope had that Landon didn’t, was that she always knew she was loved. She wants him to know that feeling too.</p><p>Hope brings her hands up to gently cup his face, briefly tracing a faint scar on his jawline before pulling him closer until they're foreheads are leaning against one another.</p><p>"You're so much stronger than people give you credit for, stronger than <em>you</em> give yourself credit for." She whispers sincerely, surprising him. Landon tries to shake his head in disagreement, but Hope holds firm.</p><p>"Yes, you are. You’ve been through so much, but you never let it get to you. You could have let yourself become cold and closed off, but you didn’t. You never let anyone extinguish that light. Instead, you held onto it, and even shined it on those who found themselves stuck in the darkness."</p><p>Hope sighs heavily and closes her eyes as she continues.</p><p>"After I lost my parents, I shut down and pushed everyone away. And for a long time, I was okay with that. It was easier. Safer. But then you came back into my life and reminded me that wasn't a way to live. You saved me from the lonely path I was so set to keep myself on. And I just wish you could see yourself the way I see you. Because if you could, you'd realize just how strong, and brave, and kind you really are. And that you didn't deserve all that pain and fear you were forced to live with."</p><p>Hope feels her thumbs on his cheek becoming slightly wet, and she hears him swallow hard, emotions getting caught up in his throat. Eventually he manages a subtle nod in acknowledgement and for now, that's good enough for her.</p><p>They linger in the moment for a bit, the closeness bringing them both a deep sense of comfort and safety. He wishes he could stay like this forever, but obviously he can't, so Landon pulls away with some reluctance. Clearing his throat, he shakes off the heavy emotions and overwhelming sense of vulnerability he feels as he reaches for the photo album again.</p><p>"Let's get back to this." He offers in an effort to change the subject.</p><p>"You still want to?" She asks curiously, chin tipped in mild surprise.</p><p>"Yeah. I mean, I'm certainly not gonna pass up a chance to see adorable baby pics of you." Landon teases and Hope laughs, shaking her head dismissively.</p><p>"Oh God, I hope she doesn't have anything too embarrassing in here." She groans, suddenly regretting her decisions to check out the album for the first time with Landon beside her, and a wide grin spreads across his face.</p><p>"Embarrassing photos of Hope Mikaelson? I didn't think those even existed."</p><p>"A rare anomaly, I assure you." She responds playfully with a faux air of confidence, and Landon chuckles as she turns the page to continue.</p><p>It's strange to think that over ten years ago, he was sitting beside this exact same girl on a sofa in a cabin tucked away in the middle of the woods. This girl who has always made him feel safe in spite the monsters that awaited him, whether it be the human kind or supernatural variety. Life had thrown them into each others paths time and time again, and though he didn't know why it had, he was thankful for it. Because a life without Hope in it, in his opinion, wasn't much of a life at all.</p>
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